


Heaven Only Knows

by keenwonderlandcollector



Category: Iron Man (Movies), Spider-Man (Tom Holland Movies)
Genre: Angst, Cheating, Drama, F/M, Fluff, M/M, Romance, Starker
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-27
Updated: 2020-12-30
Packaged: 2021-03-10 17:20:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 8,911
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28360797
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/keenwonderlandcollector/pseuds/keenwonderlandcollector
Summary: Peter Parker has the perfect life, a loving husband and wonderful children, but everything is about to fall apart..
Relationships: Peter Parker/Stephen Strange, Peter Parker/Tony Stark
Comments: 14
Kudos: 85





	1. I

**Author's Note:**

> For the request I received on tumblr ‘peter catches tony cheating (multiple times!) and in retaliation, he takes morgan(8), harley(14), and ben(4) (their kids) and disappears from the face of the earth. years later, tony is on his way to a bar or smth and sees Harley and Morgan and follows them just to see Peter kissing Stephen (and has the giggling 6 yr old on his hip.)’ - I started listening to Heaven Only Knows by Emmylou Harris as I was writing this and it jumped from 100 words to just over 4k 😳🙈 This is a little angsty, and I found myself hating Tony just a little 🙈🙈 Nevertheless, hopefully you enjoy! ❤️

“Okay, let me just put this last grip in and..” Peter took one of the kirby grips from his mouth, carefully sliding it into Morgan’s hair and standing back, checking his work. “done, I think. You can pause the video now, sweetheart.”

“Can I see it?” Morgan asked, leaning forward and pausing the YouTube video laying on the laptop in front of her. 

“Of course, let me just get the mirror.” Peter smiled, heading out of the room and walking to the bathroom, stopping outside Harley’s adjacent bedroom door and knocking on it, a tired grumbling sound emerging from the room as Peter stepped inside. 

“This is the last time I’m coming in, next time I’m sending Ben in to jump on you.” Peter grinned as Harley lifted an arm from underneath the blanket, letting out a yawn.

‘M up, ‘m up..” The teenager groaned, pulling the blanket back dramatically as Peter left the room, heading into the bathroom and getting the portable mirror to take back to Morgan’s room.

“It’s perfect!” The eight year old beamed, gently touching her styled brunette waves. “thank you, daddy.”

“Don’t worry about it,” Peter smiled, heading to the closet and opening it to find Morgan’s outfit for the day. “we had to get the look right.”

-

“We’re coming in, get ready!” Peter called, holding Morgan’s hand as he opened the door to the kitchen, walking in with the girl. There was pink and white bunting hung across the ceiling, along with various pink and white balloons strewn on the table and island. 

“There’s my little princess,” Tony grinned, standing by the sink with Ben on his hip, a piece of half-eaten toast in his hand. “Happy Birthday, sweetheart.”

“Happy Birthday!” Ben giggled, clapping his hands as Morgan gave a twirl in her princess dress.

“Haffy Birfday sis.” Harley offered through a mouthful of cereal.

“ _Ew_ , Harley!” Morgan snapped, folding her arms and looking up at Peter. “Daddy, tell Harley he can’t come to my party like that.” 

“Harley, go put some clothes on, would you?” Peter raised an eyebrow at the teenager, who was sitting at the island in just his boxers. 

‘M going,” Harley sighed, picking up his bowl and sticking his tongue out at Morgan as he left the kitchen.

“And look smart!” Tony called after the teenager, taking a bite of the toast in his hand before giving the rest to Ben.

“He’s so embarrassing.” Morgan sighed, heading over to the table and sitting down, picking up a box of cereal as Tony smiled over at Peter.

“He’s your brother,” Tony grinned, walking over to Peter and kissing his cheek. “he’s supposed to be embarrassing.” 

-

“Is that the cake?” Peter asked, looking up as Tony walked into the kitchen holding a large white box.

“Yeah, wanna have a look?” Tony smiled, setting it down on the kitchen table.

“Of course.” Peter walked over to the table, opening the lid of the box and smiling as he took in the large rectangular white cake, pink frosting piped around the edges with the Disney princesses on the front. “It’s perfect, she’ll love it.”

“How’s it going out there?” Tony gestured to the back garden, music and loud giggling and noise coming from it.

“Organized chaos,” Peter laughed softly, closing the lid on the cake and carrying the box over to the fridge. “but what else could you expect?”

“True,” Tony grinned, running a through his hair. “I better go and get changed, I’ll be down in a minute.” 

“Alright.” Peter smiled, watching as Tony left the kitchen to head upstairs. 

Things between them were finally back to normal after a rough couple of months, and Peter was relieved. 

Tony Stark, and his reputation, had been well known to Peter when he first met the man. Peter had been working as an engineer for a fairly large firm in New York when he’d been headhunted by Stark Industries, and found himself jumping at the opportunity. He’d admired Tony Stark for years, and was excited to join the company. 

It didn’t take long before Peter was introduced to his new boss, and was instantly besotted by the man. They began dating, and Peter had never felt happier. Their lives were vastly different, Peter was 22, living in a tiny apartment in Queens he was just about able to pay for, and exclusively wore nerdy t-shirts and slightly ripped jeans. Tony was 38, a hugely influential Genius, Billionaire, Philanthropist and of course..Playboy.

Peter knew all the rumours about Tony’s personal life, but Tony made him feel that he was the only person in the world that mattered, and Peter was well and truly swept off his feet. Once they had been dating for about a month, Tony wanted to introduce Peter to his son, Harley. It had been a nerve-wracking thought, Peter knew it was a big commitment if he got to know Harley and became involved in his life, but he also took it as a good sign that Tony really cared about him and their relationship. 

As soon as Peter had met the cheeky six-year-old, he was instantly charmed by him. Harley definitely inherited his father’s sense of humour, as well as his intelligence and passion for engineering. Peter adored him, and within six months of dating Tony he had moved in with the Starks. 

The first time Peter caught Tony cheating on him had been when Peter was living at the Tower for about a year, and came home early from work one evening and heard giggling from the main bedroom. Harley had gone to a friend’s house after school for the evening and Peter had thought Tony was still out of town, not due back til the morning.

Tony had apologised profusely, insisting it hadn’t meant anything, moment of weakness, didn’t mean it..Peter was more surprised than anything else. He had thought that that part of Tony’s life had gone away, in a way, since he’d been dating Peter.

Loathe as he was to admit it, Peter was very willing to brush it under the carpet, so desperate to be with Tony and wanting to keep him that he forgave him a little sooner than he should, if at all.

-

Just over a year after moving in with Tony and Harley, Peter officially adopted Harley, and hoped that them becoming an official family would aid things going forward. It did, thankfully. Peter and Tony’s relationship went from strength to strength and Peter fully embraced his role as a father. 

When Peter was 24, he and Tony discussed adding to their family, and as soon as they met a four-old-old Morgan at a local orphanage, they were besotted, and soon had a daughter. Harley and Morgan were a little wary of each other at first, but as soon as they became comfortable enough with each other to start some sibling bickering, Peter and Tony knew they had done the right thing. 

A year after Morgan joined their family, Peter found out that Tony’s latest ‘business trip’ was anything but, and after many late night arguments and tears, Tony agreed to move outside the city, start over.

Things were tense for a while, but a couple of months of living in their renovated farmhouse, out in the peace and quiet of nature, things soon got better. So much so that after a year of living there harmoniously, they decided to add to their family, using a surrogate this time.

Ben was a dream baby, very content and instantly loved by his family. Peter finally felt like things would be better, that he had everything he could ever want and nothing could go wrong. 

And, for almost four years, Peter felt like he was living the dream life. Tony was more loving and attentive than ever, the kids were thriving, and life was good. Until, it wasn’t.

It had been so cliched, Peter borrowing Tony’s phone to make a call and finding a text coming in from someone called Steve. It was incredibly flirty, and Peter soon found a long string of texts exchanged between Tony and this Steve, evidence of a lingering affair. 

Peter had never been so hurt or angry in his entire life. Tony hadn’t tried to deny it when Peter confronted him, which was the only saving grace. Peter couldn't remember the fight, blocked it out. He remembered shouting, throwing things, crying for what felt like hours. Part of him knew he should leave, but he didn’t want to break up the family for the kids. But he swore to Tony that it was his final chance, if Tony ever cheated again they were done. 

-

Setting the tray of multicoloured cupcakes down on the long table in the garden, Peter smiled as he watched Morgan, dressed up in her Belle outfit running around with her friends who were all dressed in similar princess outfits. The princess phase had only started about a month ago, and Peter felt like it was one that would be staying. 

There were a group of parents standing and chatting by the playpen the younger kids, including Ben, were playing in. Harley was sitting on a lawn chair, thankfully having gotten dressed, looking bored as he scrolled through his phone. 

"Hey," Peter smiled as he approached the teenager. "could you run and grab the video camera? It's on the kitchen table."

"Sure, dad," The teen nodded, tucking his phone into his pocket and standing up. "be right back."

Peter gently squeezed his shoulder before joining the group of parents.

When Harley hadn’t returned after twenty minutes, Peter excused himself from the conversation and went to head inside, stopping halfway across the garden as he noticed Harley storm out of the house, walking over to Peter and shoving the video camera into his hands.

"Here."

"Hang on," Peter raised an eyebrow, gently grabbing the teen's arm. "what's with the attitude?"

"You might want to have a look at what's on there." Harley muttered, walking away and leaving his father confused. 

Peter opened the camera, finding the most recently filmed thing. It was just a white screen for a moment, before distant giggling sounded. The camera began to move and Peter realised it was in the kitchen, moving toward the laundry room. The door was slightly ajar, and the giggling was louder.

His stomach clenched as the camera approached the gap in the door, zooming in on the occupants of the room, standing down at the end of it. A blonde woman who Peter recognised vaguely, she could've had a child in Morgan or Ben's class, was sitting on the dryer, her hands resting back on the machine. Her dark floral dress was hiked up around her thighs and her head was tilted back as she laughed. Between her legs stood Tony, his hands on the woman's hips. He leaned in and whispered something to the woman, before kissing her. Peter turned it off, switching to a new recording.

He felt sick. Of course it had happened again. Why wouldn't it? Tony most likely just expected to get away with it by now. The fact that Tony had cheated again hurt, but what really tore Peter's heart out was that it was at Morgan's birthday party. In their home.

Everything around the brunette fell away, fading into a blur. He had to..do something, find Tony. He didn't even want to be near the man but this was the last straw, Peter knew he couldn't take anymore.

As he went to turn and walk into the house, the blonde from the video breezed out, smiling as she joined the group of parents, flicking her hair over her shoulder. Peter felt his blood boiling, his heartbeat pounding in his ears. He caught sight of Harley, who now had Morgan on his back and was carrying her around the garden while she giggled and pointed to her desired locations. For a brief moment, Peter saw the teen look at the blonde woman, anger in his eyes. Hurt. Pain. Betrayal, written all over Harley's face before he threw on a smile, hitching Morgan up on his back. 

Peter knew he had to find Tony, taking a couple of deep breaths. Before he got to the door, Tony was walking out of it, Morgan's cake in his hands. Snapping into default, Peter quickly lifted the camera and recorded Harley setting Morgan down at the long pink table, Tony carrying the cake over while everyone began singing. 

It broke Peter's heart into a million pieces when Morgan blew out the candles and she and Tony smiled over at the camera, giving a wave.

"Harley," Peter called once the cake had been dished out, walking over to his eldest child. "could you keep an eye on the kids for a few minutes, please."

"Yeah," Harley nodded, looking over to Tony with a dark glare. "I will."

"Thank you, honey." Peter smiled softly, gently squeezing his son's arm before heading to his husband, taking a deep breath. 

"Tony," Peter kept his voice low and fixed a smile on his face. "I need to talk to you inside."

"Yeah," Tony nodded, taking a bite of the cake. "I'll be inside in a minute."

"No," Peter muttered, his heart clenching tight as he looked into his husband's eyes. "now."

Peter didn't wait for a response before turning and walking into the house, heading upstairs and into their bedroom. He sat down on the end of the bed, taking a couple of deep breaths as Tony entered the room, closing the door behind him. 

They had been in this situation before, too often. 

Peter never wanted to be in it again. 

"What's on your mind?" Tony asked, walking closer to his husband with a soft smile that ripped Peter's heart into shreds. 

"The kids," Peter answered, looking down at the blanket under him. "which is more than I can say for you." 

"What's that supposed to mean?" Tony frowned, folding his arms as Peter looked up at him. 

"Don't." Peter sighed, shaking his head. "You know what it means."

"I don't." Tony ran a hand over his face, letting out a deep sigh. 

"It's our daughter's birthday," Peter's tone was barely above a whisper as he stood, his eyes focused on his husband's. "and where are you? Touching up some blonde in the laundry room."

"I have no idea what you're talki-" 

"Oh please," Peter snapped. "save us both, we've been down this road enough times. You might as well have taken her into our bed." 

"How.." Tony swallowed a breath, a guilty look forming on his face that Peter almost felt immune to by now. 

"Harley heard you, then he filmed it. So you can't deny it." 

"Peter, baby, I'm sor-" 

"Save it." Peter muttered, looking away. "I don't want to hear it. We're going to go downstairs, enjoy our daughter's party and then we'll deal with this later." 

-

Peter wasn’t sure how he managed to get through the rest of the day, it all felt like a blur. Eventually, the party was over, and Peter had never had to restrain himself so much as the blonde that Tony had been with came over to him, hugging him and thanking him for a great time. 

There wasn’t a chance to get Tony alone, between cleaning up after the party, getting Ben to bed and then making dinner, Peter was almost dreading it. His relationship was over, he knew that. But all he could think of was the kids, how they would react, would they even understand?

  
After Morgan was put to bed, Harley stayed in the living room for a while before announcing wih a sigh that he was going to his room. 

"Okay," Peter smiled, his heart tightening in his chest. "goodnight, sweetheart."

"Night, dad." Harley offered a small smile before heading to the door.

"Goodnight, Harls." Tony called, frowning when the teen didn’t look back, walking out the door without a second glance. 

“We need to have a talk.” Peter sighed, running a hand over his face and turning to face Tony.

"Is there anything I can do to make it up to you?" Tony asked, letting out a soft sigh as he went to reach for Peter’s hand.

"No." Peter moved his hand back, refusing to get upset. He’d cried over Tony enough. "Not this time."

"Pete, baby, we can work through this." Tony insisted, moving forward on the couch. 

"We can't, not anymore. I.." Peter shook his head, forcing back the tears that threatened to rise to the surface. "I won’t let you hurt me anymore. Or the kids. Harley's already lost all respect for you, and I won't let the same happen to Morgan and Ben."

"Pete.."

"No," Peter sighed, holding up his hand. "you don't get to talk." The younger man took a deep breath, looking up for a moment. "I won't cry. I won't shout or scream, I won't even argue with you this time. I can't, anymore."

"There must be something I can do, I can't apologise enough.." Tony reached out his hand and rested it on Peter’s knee. 

"I don't want your apologies," Peter sighed, looking over at the older man. "you shouldn't  _ have _ to apologise. You should be able to keep it in your pants long enough to celebrate our daughter's birthday but nothing is sacred to you anymore, is it?"

"Those kids are my  _ life _ ,” Tony stood from the couch, his tone pointed. “you know that."

"Were you thinking about  _ them _ when you were with  _ her _ ?” Peter snapped, standing up and pointing his finger at Tonys’ chest. “were you thinking about  _ me _ ? No, you were thinking about  _ yourself _ ." 

Peter took a step back, refusing to cry, refusing to get angrier, start another row. He walked over to the door, reaching for the handle with a shaky hand before looking over his shoulder. 

"I hope she was worth it, Tony. I hope they all were."

-

Tony knew it was coming, but it still hurt.

He’d returned home from work and found the house empty. The kids rooms were much emptier, their closets empty and most of their belongings also gone. He found a letter on his pillow, sitting down on the bed and opening it, taking in Peter’s neat handwriting. 

_ ‘Tony, _

_ I never wanted it to come to this, I really didn’t. _

_ But..any love or respect I had for you is gone, and you’ve lost any right to call yourself a father to the kids.  _

_ We’re starting over, and I hope that you can do the same. _

_ I wish it could have worked between us, I really do, but I can never trust you again. _

_ If anything can come from this, I hope it’ll make you change your behaviour in future, think about what’s really important to you. _

_ Peter.’ _

He laid down on the bed, holding the letter over his chest and closing his eyes. He couldn’t defend his actions, he did’t even know why he did it. Peter was his world, as were the kids. He loved them all more than anything, but that had never stopped him before, and he always regretted it.

He’d lost everything that meant something to him, and he knew he’d made the biggest mistake of his life. 

-

Peter didn’t know why he’d chosen California, it just seemed the furthest place from Tony, a place he could start over, and give the kids a chance to start over.

Harley loved it, instantly embracing the new start and being a huge help to Peter in getting the two younger kids settled. Peter had talked to Harley about the move a couple of times, making sure Harley truly was okay with it, and just needing some reassurance he was doing the right thing not only for him, but for his children.

Ben didn’t really understand what was happening, and spent the first week crying about Tony not being there, and breaking Peter’s heart. Once Peter managed to get them a house, and enrolled the kids in schools, Ben calmed down, began to adapt to the new situation in the way young children could.

Morgan was the most affected. She didn’t understand the situation fully, and wanted to go home. Peter tried to explain the situation, and Harley was a huge help, but Morgan was deeply affected by the upheaval. He signed Morgan up for the same extracurricualrs she’d taken back in New York, and took an interest in her schoolwork as he always had. While the kids were at school, Peter decorated their rooms, making sure to give Morgan’s a princess theme, complete with a couple of new dolls. 

It was a relief when Morgan saw her room and smiled for the first time since they’d arrived. 

-

For the first..two, three months after Peter and the kids left, Tony fell into a spiral of drinking excessively and, to his shame, sleeping with anyone with a pulse, wanting to block out the pain. He spent hours just sitting on each of the kids beds, cursing himself for being such an idiot. 

After five months, he sold the house, unable to move on with the memories haunting him. He bought an apartment in the city and managed to weather the media circus that followed, trying to piece his life back together. He wanted to be better, prove that he could be a good person, be a good father. 

A year later, Tony was feeling like he was in a much better place. He’d gotten sober, had concentrated his efforts on work, keeping the comany running successfully (with a lot of help from Pepper, who was almost like a guardian angel throughout the whole ordeal) and went on to meet someone.

James was a writer who Tony had met at a charity event, the two of them hitting it off and keeping in contact. James was everything Tony wanted, attractive, intelligent, witty and sweet. Tomy finally felt like things were going right, and maybe, just maybe, there was the slightest chance he could get back into his children’s lives.

-

Just under a year after moving out to California, Peter first met Dr. Stephen Strange.

Morgan had suffered an ankle injury during her gymnastics class and when Peter had taken her to the local health centre she was seen to by Stephen, who managed to get her from crying to laughing impressively easily. He let the girl pick out a pink bandage and a princess lollipop.

It took six months for Peter to build up the courage to ask Stephen out for a cup of coffee.

Since their first meeting, Peter had visited Stephen at the health centre many more times. Mostly it was with the two younger kids, who had both certainly taken a shine to the doctor. A handful of times, Peter had visited alone, and found himself becoming increasingly attracted to the doctor. Stephen was handsome, intelligent, charming and he was great with the kids, everything Peter could want. They'd flirted quite often, but had yet to take it any further.

Yet.. Peter felt guilty for wanting to enter into another relationship. He hadn't so much as been on a date since he left Tony, but he didn't want to make the kids uncomfortable if he started seeing someone else.

He talked to each of them about it, in different ways.

Harley was insistent that Peter didn't need to feel guilty for wanting to move on, citing that Tony wouldn't be feeling the same way. Peter should live his life the way he wants, not worry about anyone else.

With Morgan and Ben, Peter talked to them about the situation as he was getting them ready for bed, asking how they would feel if he were to become friends with Dr. Strange. Morgan understood the meaning a little more than Ben did, and seemed a little unsure at first. Peter let the idea go, and despite Ben seeming enthusiastic about the idea, unless all the kids were on board Peter wouldn't proceed.

Harley had a talk about the situation with Morgan, explaining that Tony wasn't being replaced, it was just that Peter was ready to meet someone else, that it wouldn't change anything, and Peter still loved Morgan and would always put the kids before anything else.

So, when Peter was tucking his daughter into bed the following night, Morgan casually mentioned that she'd be okay with Peter and Dr. Strange being friends, Peter couldn't stop smiling.

When it came to actually asking Stephen out, Peter was incredibly nervous. He was pretty sure that he wouldn't be rejected but even so. He'd never really asked anyone out before. He'd had a couple of dates in high school and college, but they were never exactly romantic, just hanging out or going to the movies or getting some pizza.

Then he'd met Tony, and..thought he'd never be dating anyone again.

But there was a first time for everything, and Peter managed to find the courage to go and ask the doctor out.

_ SIX MONTHS LATER _

"Morgan, are you ready?" Peter called, knocking on the ten year old's bedroom door.

"Just a minute!" Morgan called back, a sing-song tone in her voice that suggested she'd be a while longer.

Peter smiled to himself as he headed downstairs, walking into the living room and finding Harley, Ben and Stephen sitting on the couch. Ben was sitting on Stephen’s lap, giggling as he played Mario Kart with Harley. Peter went to sit on the arm of the couch, leaning in and kissing Stephen’s cheek before resting his head on the older man’s shoulder, smiling as Stephen wrapped an arm around his waist. 

After another ten minutes, Morgan finally emerged, and they were ready to go out for dinner.

-

“You sure you don’t wanna come, sweetheart?” Tony asked, looking over to where James was laying on the bed, pulling on his jacket. He was running slightly late to a business meeting, albeit a very casual one. In an ideal world, the clients would have come out to New York but instead, Tomy found himself having to fly out to California. 

“I’m still not feeling great,” James sighed, curling up in the blanket and offering Tony a small smile. “I think I’ll have to pass.”

“Okay, do you want me to stay with you?” Tony asked, walking over to the bed and sitting down resting his hand on his boyfriend’s forehead. “I don’t mind.”

“There’s no need,” James sighed softly, closing his eyes. “they’ll be waiting for you, tell them I said hello.”

“Alright, I’ll be back soon,” Tony smiled, leaning in to kiss James’ cheek before standing up and heading to the door. “Love you.”

-

“Here’s good,” Tony smiled as the car pulled up by the hotel his meeting was being held in. 

Stepping out of the car, Tony smoothed out his suit before walking down the street to the hotel, the setting sun warm as he headed up to the door and walked inside. He didn't know why he felt nervous about the meeting, but there was an uncomfortable feeling settling in his stomach as he made his way to the restaurant.

As Tony was giving the  Maître d his name, he heard a familiar giggling, shaking his head and trying not to focus on it. It was just his imagination. Until it sounded again, and Tony looked out across the restaurant, his heart catching in his throat as he took in the table in the middle of the room.

It was Harley, there was no mistaking him. He looked taller, and his hair was cut short, but it was definitely him. Morgan was sitting next to him, smiling brightly. Her hair was longer, and she looked taller too. Peter was sitting beside her, looking..looking more beautiful than Tony had dared remember. He looked happy, radiant, ethereal.

They were all looking up at a man who had..who had Ben on his hip. The boy looked so much more grown up in the two years that had passed. His brown curls were a little wilder, but he had the same adorable smile. The man holding him looked about Tony's age, tall, slim, handsome features. His black hair was neatly styled and there was a brightness in his eyes as he gently set Ben down beside Harley, before sitting next to him and beside Peter, leaning over to give the brunette a kiss.

"You know what?" Tony swallowed thickly, his heart tightening. "I think I might just cance-"

"Papa!" Tony looked over to the table in the middle of the room and found Morgan's eyes focused on him, before the girl pushed back her chair and began running towards him. Ben soon followed suit, letting out an excited shriek and running over to Tony. Stooping down, Tony wrapped his arms around Morgan as she ran into him, letting Ben in on the hug when the boy rushed over.

"I've missed you so much," Tony whispered softly, pushing back the tears that threatened to spill. "I'm so sorry."

As soon as the two kids in his arms started crying, Tony couldn't stop his own emotions overwhelming him. He stood up, keeping his arms around his children and looking over to find Harley looking at him with a confused expression, his cheeks slightly red. Tony dared to look at Peter, the brunette's hand over his mouth and his eyes wide and filled with tears, the man sitting next to him gently rubbing his back.

Taking a breath, Tony picked up Ben and took Morgan's hand, taking a step forward. 


	2. II

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony wants to become involved in the kid's lives again, but will Peter allow it?

“How are they?” Stephen asked, closing his book and setting it down on the coffee table looking over to Peter with a soft smile.

“Finally asleep,” Peter sighed, walking over to the couch and sitting down beside his boyfriend, resting his head against Stephen’s chest and curling his legs up on the couch. “I thought they were gonna climb the walls, they were so excited.”

“And how are  _ you _ ?” Stephen wrapped his arm Peter’s shoulders, gently kissing the top of his curls. 

“I’ll be fine,” Peter murmured softly, draping his arm across Stephen’s waist and looking over at the TV. “I have you.”

To say it was a shock to see Tony after two years was an understatement, and only for Stephen, Peter wasn’t sure he’d have made it through the evening. Once Tony had brought the kids back to the table and awkward pleasantries had been exchanged, Tony had excused himself and left Peter with two excited children and a surly teenager to deal with. Fortunately, Stephen had been able to calm the situation, taking Peter outside for some air while Harley dealt with the two younger kids.

Dinner had been a blur, and Peter had been relieved to get home and try to forget the evening had ever happened. Morgan in particular was thrilled about seeing Tony, and Peter found himself wanting to curse Tony for just dropping back into their lives like a bomb and leaving him to pick up the pieces.

-

Waking up after a rough night of sleep, Peter let out a soft sigh as he pulled the blanket back, slowly sitting up. He could hear the shower running, and smiled softly to himself as he made up the bed, heading to the closet and taking out his clothes for the day and laying them out on the bed. 

Peter hoped that the kids would be able to move past Tony’s appearance, but he wasn’t confident. He couldn’t blame them, but it was still hard for him to deal with. Heading out of the room and down the hall, Peter gently knocked on Harley’s door first, knowing it would take another half hour before the teen began to stir. Moving on to Morgan’s room, Peter gently knocked on the door before pushing it open, finding his daughter sleeping peacefully.

“Morning princess,” Peter smiled softly, opening the shutters and letting the early morning sunlight stream into the room. “time to get up.”

“Morning..” A sleepy yawn emerged from under the blanket, a mop of brown hair poking out from the top before the blanket was pushed away, Morgan slowly sitting up in the bed and rubbing her eyes.

“Don’t forget you have gymnastics after school, your gym bag is in the kitchen,” Peter walked over to the bed, gently kissing the top of Morgan’s head. “come down for breakfast when you’re ready.”

Leaving Morgan to get dressed, Peter headed down the hall to Ben’s room, finding the boy sitting up in his bed and playing with the light grey penguin toy he’d had since he was a couple of months old. 

“Morning sweetheart,” Peter smiled, walking over to the boy and gently kissing the top of his head before heading to the window and opening the shutters. “what do you want to wear today?” 

Ben climbed down from the bed, heading over to the closet, opening it and clutching the penguin as he looked through the options. Peter moved over to the wooden dresser by the bed, opening the top drawer and taking out some underwear and socks, setting them on top of the dresser before making the bed.

“I want to wear this, daddy,” Ben smiled, holding up a red t-shirt with yellow stripes and a pair of navy shorts. “please.” 

“Of course, let’s get you ready.” Peter smiled, heading over to get Ben dressed. 

“Daddy?” Ben asked as Peter picked up a comb from the dresser and tamed Ben’s hair into submission. “can we see Papa again today?”

Peter knew it would only be a matter of time before Tony was brought up, but it still hit him right in the chest as he took a breath, trying to figure out how best to deal with it. 

“We’ll see,” Peter gently patted Ben’s shoulder with the comb, knowing he’d have to get on top of the situation eventually. “for now it’s time for breakfast.” Peter scooped the boy up into his arms, walking out into the hall and heading for the kitchen.

-

Harley looked at the text on his phone, gripping the device tightly. He was still struggling with trying to process seeing his father again after two years of no contact, and as he looked at the text from the man wanting to meet up, he felt conflicted.

Tony had never been the perfect father, Harley would be the first to attest to that. When he was a child, Harley felt like neither of his parents wanted him, Tony would work all the time and his mother never exactly had the maternal instinct. Harley barely remembered his mother, she was beautiful, he remembered that, but cold, distant. He would lay awake at night and listen to his parents fight, crying himself to sleep until he learned it wouldn't change anything.

When Harley's mother left them, Tony did make a concentrated effort with his son, and their relationship improved. When Peter came onto the scene, Harley felt like he finally had a true family. He could tell Peter loved both of them, was warm and caring and loving.

It hurt Harley deeply when he heard Tony and Peter arguing. He didn't understand why Tony was so intent on destroying their family. The bad times were hard, but the good times were the best of Harley's life.

When they'd moved to California, Harley was confident that he'd cut ties with his father. Peter was more of a parent to him than anyone ever had been, and he adored his siblings, wanting to keep them safe from the familial disruption.

But when Tony had appeared in the restaurant, it had struck Harley deeply. Part of him wanted to react the way Morgan and Ben had, to just run into his father’s arms and forget everything that happened. He hadn’t anticipated having any kind of feelings like that, and it had thrown him for a loop. 

“Come on Harls, we’re gonna be late,” 

The blonde looked up at the sound of Alex’s voice, smiling softly before nodding at his girlfriend. “I’ll be right there.” He looked down at the text once more, sending a quick reply before slipping his phone into his pocket and taking the redhead’s hand and heading to class.

-

“Alright, I’ll see you tonight,” Harley wrapped his arms around Alex’s waist pulling her in for a kiss before pulling back with a soft smile. “I gotta go do something.”

“I still don’t get to know what it is?” The redhead raised an eyebrow, resting her hands around Harley’s shoulders with a soft smile. The warm afternoon sun beamed down on them as they leaned against Harley’s car in the school parking lot. 

“It’s..complicated,” Harley shrugged. He’d only been dating Alex for a couple of weeks and hadn’t wanted to divulge into his family drama just yet. “you sure you don’t want me to drop you home first?”

“It’s alright,” The redhead smiled, stepping back and sweeping her long waves up into a ponytail. “I’m gonna go over to Laura’s and study, see you tonight.”

Harley watched her go for a moment before getting into his mustang and starting it up, bracing himself for what was to come, still not sure if he was even doing the right thing. He felt like he was going behind Peter’s back, betraying his dad, but he tried to push the thought aside as he drove out of the parking lot, heading for the diner he’d arranged to meet Tony at. 

He’d chosen the place he’d had his first date with Alex in, hoping that would make it more tolerable to meet up with his father in a place he felt comfortable in. Pulling up in the parking lot, Harley killed the engine and got out of the car, taking a breath as he headed inside.

Tony was already sitting in one of the red vinyl booths, his hands folded on the white table as he looked out the window. Harley walked over, a strange feeling in his stomach as he did, particularly when Tony looked over at him, a slightly sad smile on the man’s face as Harley approached.

“Hey,” Tony sat up as Harley sat down across from him. “how are you?”

“Fine,” Harley nodded, clearing his throat and looking over to the window for a moment. “you?”

“I’m doing good,” Tony smiled softly as Harley looked back at him. “thank you for agreeing to meet up, it means a lot.”

“I..I wasn’t sure if I should,” Harley sighed, picking up a menu and looking over it despite being able to recite it at this point. “I feel like I’m going behind dad’s back.”

“How is Peter?” Tony asked trepidatiously, picking up his own menu.

“Happy.” Harley replied simply, keeping his eyes on the menu.

“I’m glad.” Tony smiled softly, his voice not much higher than a whisper.

They sat in silence for a moment, examining the menus. Harley looked over at his father, the strange feeling in his stomach dissipating slightly and a slight smile forming on his face.

“The double cheeseburger is really good.” 

-

“Ah, there you are,” Peter smiled, looking up from the table as he saw Harley walk into the kitchen and drop his school bag onto the floor before sitting down across from him. “how was school?”

“It was good,” Harley nodded, smiling over at Ben, the boy sitting beside Peter and picking at the last of the bowl of vegetable stir fry in front of him. “how was work?” 

“Oh fine,” Peter gently wiped Ben’s mouth with a tissue as the boy pushed his bowl away. “exciting as ever.”

“Do you mind if I go to Alex’s tonight?” Harley asked, sitting back in his chair and sticking his tongue out at Ben, who giggled and imitated the action.

“Of course not,” Peter smiled, getting up from the table and taking Ben’s discarded bowl to the sink. “just be back by eleven. Ben, you can go and play now.”

“Okay!” Ben smiled, sliding off his chair and heading out of the kitchen, leaving Harley to turn his attention to his father, taking a deep breath.

“I need to tell you something,” The blonde started, sitting up in his seat as Peter turned from the sink, walking over to the table and sitting back down. “I..I met up with pops today.”

“I see,” Peter nodded slowly, lightly scratching his jaw. “when?” 

“After school, we went to get something to eat.” Harley reached his hand across the table, a frown on his face. “I hope that’s okay?”

“Oh sweetheart,” Peter smiled softly, taking Harley’s hand and giving it a gentle squeeze. “of course it’s okay, he’s your father. You have every right to see him if you want to, I’d never stop you.”

“I didn’t want you to think I was going behind your back,” Harley gave his dad’s hand a quick squeeze before letting it go, sitting back in his seat. “he asked me to meet and I wasn’t sure if I should but..”

“It’s okay,” Peter sat up in his seat, taking a breath. “how..how is he?”

“He’s..better,” Harley admitted, a tiny smile on his face. “he seems to be in a better place than he was. Work is going good, he’s seeing someone, he..he asked if maybe he could see Morgan and Ben? You’d be there too and it wouldn’t have to be for long, just a couple of hours maybe?”

Peter took in the almost hopeful look on Harley’s face and felt his heart softening. 

“I’ll think about it.”

-

Peter hadn’t been able to stop thinking about what Harley had said. He felt conflicted, knowing that if he let Tony see the kids it would possibly open a whole can of worms. The kids would be thrilled, but what would happen when Tony went back to New York?

Looking over to the couch, Peter smiled softly as he saw Stephen laying on it, reading his book as Morgan lay curled up next to him, her eyes dropping slightly as she watched TV. 

“Morgan, why don’t you go get ready for bed?” Peter sat up in the armchair he was curled up in, wanting a moment alone with Stephen, needing a second opinion. “your pyjamas are laid out on your bed, I’ll be up in a minute, princess.” 

“Alright,” The girl yawned, slowly sat up on the couch, turning to Stephen and giving him a hug. “goodnight.” 

“Goodnight, honey.” Stephen smiled, gently rubbing Morgan’s back before she hopped off the couch, heading to the door and out of the room.

“Can I talk to you about something?” Peter asked once Morgan had left, getting off the armchair and joining his boyfriend on the couch.

“Always,” Stephen nodded, gently lifting his arm as Peter cuddled against him. “what’s on your mind?” 

“Harley met up with Tony today,” Peter sighed, gently stroking Stephen’s arm. “and apparently now..Tony wants to see Morgan and Ben.”

“Okay,” Stephen nodded, lifting his other hand to gently stroke Peter’s hair. “what’s wrong with that? I mean, they’re his kids too, surely he has the right to see them.”

“I know that,” Peter nodded, looking up at this boyfriend. “and I know the kids would love to see him but..he’s only here on business, he’ll have to go back to New York and then the kids will just be all confused about why he’s gone again and I’ll be the one left to deal with it.”

“If you have concerns then maybe you should talk to Tony about it,” Stephen suggested, lightly stroking Peter’s curls. “try and come up with some arrangement that works. I know it’s not an easy situation but sooner or later the kids will want to see him, and even if it is only for a little while..I think it would mean a lot to them.”

“I suppose you’re right..” Peter sighed, smiling softly. “how is it you’re always just so calm about these things? I’ve been stressed all evening.”

“Well I can certainly help with that..” Stephen smiled, leaning down and closing the gap between them as Peter let out a content sigh.

-

“Hey, hang on a minute,” Peter called as Harley went to head out the front door. “I need to talk to you.”

“What is it?” The blonde asked, hitching his school bag on his shoulder.

“Could you tell your father that I’ll take Morgan and Ben to see him in the park on Saturday? 11am.” Peter folded his arms, still not entirely sure about the situation. 

“Yeah,” Harley nodded, a small smile on his face. “I’ll tell him.”

-

“Alright, we’re here,” Peter pulled up the car and killed the engine, looking into the rear view mirror and finding Morgan and Ben smiling excitedly. “let’s go.”

Peter’s heart was in his throat as he locked the car, taking the kids hands and walking over to Tony, who was walking over to them with a smile, scooping the kids into a hug as they ran towards him. 

“Hey,” Tony stood after a moment, smiling softly at Peter as he rubbed the kids backs, both of them clinging to him. “thank you for this.”

“It’s alright,” Peter held his arm in front of him, thawing a little to see the kids so happy. “shall we?”

-

“Do you mind?” Tony asked, gesturing to the empty seat on the bench beside Peter.

“No,” Peter shook his head, shifting aside slightly. “go ahead.”

In front of them, Morgan and Ben were playing on the swings, looking much happier than Peter had seen them in a while. As Peter had watched Tony running around with the kids he couldn’t deny that it warmed his heart to see them so excited.

“I really appreciate you letting me see them,” Tony smiled, looking over to the younger man. “I’ve missed them so much, but I..I know it probably wasn’t easy for you to let me back into their lives.”

“You’re their father as much as I am,” Peter shrugged, resting his hands in his lap. “they love you, and I can’t deny how good you are with them.”

“They’ve grown up so much, well, obviously,” Tony laughed slightly. “how are they finding it out here?”

“They like it,” Peter nodded, smiling softly. “they’re doing well in school and they have friends and hobbies and..I think all they were missing is you.”

“I missed them too,” Tony smiled, looking out at the kids. “I thought about them every day, thought about how colossally I screwed up. Thought about trying to invent time-travel, just to go back and do things right. Fix my mistakes.”

Peter looked over at Tony for a moment, his heart beating slightly faster in his chest, a swirl of conflicting emotions rife within him.

“Daddy!” 

Both men’s attention was drawn to the kids, Morgan waving them over with a beaming smile. Peter stood up, heading over to the kids before stopping, looking back at Tony and raising a brow. “come on, I could use a hand.”

-

A couple of weeks later, Summer was in full swing and despite Tony having gone back to New York, he (with Peter’s permission) kept in touch with the kids via phone calls. 

One evening, Peter had been a little surprised to receive a call from Tony himself, the older man asking if he could visit the kids while they were on summer vacation, offering to rent a house for a couple of weeks. 

After talking it over with Stephen and the kids, Peter called Tony back and agreed, smiling as he did.

-

As it turned out, Tony hadn’t so much rented a house, rather a mansion, complete with a huge swimming pool that the kids soon became obsessed with.

Most days, Tony had the kids over at his place while Peter and Stephen went to work, and looked after them a couple of times when Peter and Stephen had days off to give them some time alone. The kids were happier than ever, and Peter couldn’t deny that he was a little happier too. Tony was great with the kids, and when his boyfriend came out to California to visit for a week, Peter was pleasantly surprised that James was also great with the kids, and seemed to be a positive influence on Tony. 

During the second week of August, Stephen had to go and visit family, and while Peter offered to go with him, the doctor insisted he’d be fine. 

A couple of days after Stephen had left, Peter was dropping the two kids off with Tony for the day, Harley having gone to pick up Alex to take her over to his father’s, while Peter was planning to spend the day painting the kid’s bedrooms and having some time to himself while they were with Tony.

Pulling up in the driveway, Peter saw Harley’s mustang pulled up beside Tony’s Audi, smiling to himself as he got out of the car. As soon as Tony opened the front door, the kids practically barrelled into the house, heading straight for the backyard.

“I can already hear their pitch about us getting them a pool at home,” Peter raised an eyebrow, smiling as he rested on his hip. “and I know exactly how that discussion is going to go..”

“I think I’m probably spoiling them with that damn pool,” Tony laughed, folding his arms. “though Ben has had a couple of tantrums about not being able to use it, I don’t know what’s wrong with the kiddie pool I got him.”

“Oh you know how he gets,” Peter waved a hand, laughing gently. “he’ll be fine.”

“Any plans for the day?” Tony asked, smiling as he met Peter’s eyes. “you and Stephen making the most of the time away from the kids?”

“He’s away, actually,” Peter sighed softly, fixing on a smile. “a family thing. So I’m just getting some stuff done around the house. I..I heard about James, Harley told me. I’m sorry it didn’t work out with you two.”

“These things happen,” Tony sighed, lightly scratching his neck. “it was a mutual feeling that it just wasn’t working out, much as we hoped it would.”

They stayed in silence for a moment, a gentle breeze blowing over them, a strange feeling forming in Peter’s stomach, one he wasn’t entirely ready to push away completely. 

“I should get going,” Peter smiled softly, reaching into his pocket for his keys. “I’ll be back to pick them up around six, unless Harley brings them home, I don’t know what he’s planning for the day.”

“You want a coffee before you go?” Tony asked, gesturing back to the house. “or maybe something a little more..summer-y, I’m still in New York mode half the time.”

“I..” Peter glanced back at the car before looking over at Tony, nodding gently. “sure, I have some time.”

-

"Daddy, I wanna swim too!" Ben insisted, looking over to where Tony, Morgan, Harley and Alex were laughing and splashing each other in the pool.

After a cup of coffee, Peter had decided to stay a while, sitting by the kiddie pool and playing with Ben. 

"You don't know how to swim properly yet, sweetheart," Peter smiled softly, watching Tony and the two kids for a moment before turning back to Ben. "but we'll take you for swimming lessons, remember?"

"Wanna swim  _ now _ ," Ben pouted, somewhat adorably, clutching the purple octopus sitting in the water next to him. "with Papa."

"Everything okay?" Tony made his way over to the edge of the pool, pushing his hair back and resting his arms on the edge.

"It's fine," Peter smiled, looking over at Ben and raising an eyebrow. "someone's just being a little silly."

"Wanna swim with you," Ben looked over at Tony, clutching the octopus in his hands. "daddy won't let me."

"Well daddy's right," Tony smiled softly, gently easing himself out of the pool as Peter looked away, trying not to notice the way the water slowly ran down the older man's toned body. "you're too small for the big pool, but.."

Peter raised an eyebrow as Tony walked over to them, getting into the kiddie pool beside Ben.

"I can swim with you in here, see?" Tony grinned, gently splashing the boy with water, Ben giggling excitedly and splashing Tony back.

Peter smiled as he watched the scene before him. Looking over to the pool, he smiled as he saw Harley and Morgan laughing, Harley holding Morgan as she proudly swam along, her princess armbands supporting her.

"Oh! Sneaky shot.." Tony's voice drew Peter's attention, and he felt a warmth in his heart to see Ben giggling and smiling as he and Tony continued to gently splash each other.

"Do you.." Tony smiled softly, looking over at Peter and meeting his eyes, the younger man's heart beating slightly faster. "like that shirt?"

"Yeah, I..what?" Peter frowned slightly, raising an eyebrow and looking down at his shirt.

"Then I hope you'll forgive _this_.."

Peter looked up on confusion before letting out a gasp as a splash of cold pool water hit him.

"Oh.." Peter looked down at his wet shirt, a devious smile forming on his face as he looked up, leaning forward and placing his hand in the water, looking into Tony's eyes. "it's on."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So a couple of days ago I wrote the first part of this, and I feel like I wasn’t happy with the ending at all, and the story needed a little more closure, and lot more positivity! 🙈 Hopefully I've achieved that, thank you to everyone who commented on the first chapter and left kudos/bookmarked, I really appreciate it as I was so unsire about this story!


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